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  • Garmin O/S query: 820 users?
  • beagle
    Free Member

    Ok, so I’m getting a fair bit of contradicting advice from stores and Garmin themselves. As a non tech person, finding it difficult to wade through!!

    Looking an an Edge 820, for both on and off road use. Like it due to its compact size, in built maps and wifi connection etc (no pc/laptop in the household, more of this later).

    Happy with on road functionality etc, but would ideally like to have (and buy) some 1:25k topographical maps – especially for trips away to lakes/Scotland etc. how on earth do I get them on the unit with no SD slot on the device and no PC/Laptop to connect up to at home? Is there anyway of synching through the app etc? We have a house iPad.

    Don’t want something the size of the 1000 on my handlebars as it wouldn’t get used off road.

    Think I want moon on the stick stuff which may not exist yet….

    daern
    Free Member

    So, I can chuck in a few bits of advice and experience here:

    While OS maps are, clearly, perfection in mapping form they do have a couple of disadvantages when it comes to bike computers, namely that they are actually remarkably cluttered. They also have relatively poor contrast on a screen so when trying to peer at it when bouncing down a trail with mud splattered all over them, they can be a little challenging.

    They are also raster maps. What this means (and I’m sorry if you already know this – if you do, feel free to let your attention wander freely during the next sentences) is that they are constructed from fixed-size pixels. As a result, when you zoom in, they lose fidelity which is why we have 1:50k and 1:25k paper maps – they are a tradeoff between coverage and resolution on a medium which doesn’t let you zoom in and out. In reality, this means that as you zoom in they will becomes more and more pixelated and less useful. One weird eccentricity of OS maps is that they aren’t actually that accurate – they are designed for paper use and often sacrifice ultimate accuracy in the name of readability which is more important for a paper map, but can result in some odd behaviour when overlayed with a GPS-based position or route.

    I guess the third downside is that they are expensive (you presumably know this already!) and quite large. The size isn’t so much of a problem nowadays because huge storage cards are cheap as chips, but it does mean that the Garmin has to work harder to haul those bytes from storage and chuck them at the screen, meaning that they can be a bit more laggy.

    You’ll see a load of people talking about OSM and specifically, the cycling derivative, OpenCycleMap. These are vector maps – meaning that they are made up of lines rather than pixels. This means that as you zoom in and out, the map can be re-drawn to suit the specific content you are looking at. You can also enable “layers” on the map to suit your usage. This includes things like contours, POIs, woodlands, rights of way etc. Because they are vector-driven, this means they are routeable, something that you can’t ever do on a raster map, without some form of underlying vector data.

    Personally, I like the maps from TalkyToaster, which while not being free, are relatively cheap and specifically tailored to Garmin devices. They have one that is made to look a bit like the OS maps, but vector driven and a bit less cluttered.

    And a final note: I have an Edge 1000 and it gets extremely well used on my mountain bike. I have it mounted on a forward mount, so I can see it easily, but I’ve also used offset stem mounts so it sits directly above the stem. One thing that you value with maps is a bit more screen real estate so the 1000 (and more so the new 1030) really shine when displaying maps. I wouldn’t discount it so quickly and I don’t regret picking it over the 800 series for a moment.

    Regarding your question about loading maps – I think that you’ll need a PC to do this. The Edge 1000 and 1030 have an external storage card, which you can pre-load maps onto, but the 820 does not (it has 16GB onboard storage) and I’m pretty sure you’ll need to hook it up to a computer to be able to put stuff onto it. This includes third-party maps like TalkyToaster.

    On a final note, my preferred option these days is to use TalkyToaster’s maps on the Garmin for an uncluttered view and ViewRanger on my phone for more detailed OS maps (you can buy 50k and 25k maps by the tile from this, so it’s much cheaper!).

    zilog6128
    Full Member

    as above, just use the OCM-based stock Garmin maps on my 820 and use Viewranger on my phone with individually purchased OS tiles as and when required.

    Very much doubt you’re going to get any maps onto your 820 without using a PC or Mac. (Easy enough to do though if you can find one to use).

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    mrl
    Full Member

    Can I ask a few questions too. How are the osm maps detail wise compared to 1:25k is maps, are the Talkytoaster the best ones? I already have the os 1:25k on sd card so could I use them on the 820 or 1000? Can you use the Talkytoaster maps in base camp? Cheers and sorry for hijacking!

    daern
    Free Member

    How are the osm maps detail wise compared to 1:25k is maps, are the Talkytoaster the best ones?

    Great video from Martin (TalkyToaster) explaining it here. Well worth a watch.

    I reckon they are best, although the free OCM ones are pretty good so it comes down to whether you are willing to pay Martin’s (quite modest) charges.

    I already have the os 1:25k on sd card so could I use them on the 820 or 1000?

    Yes, IIRC if it’s locked to an SD card, you can move it between devices. If it’s locked to a device, you can’t. It should work and give good maps. Obviously, the biggest disadvantage here (apart from the raster vs vector I mentioned above) is the cost, but as you’ve already bought this (£300, IIRC!) then you might as well use it 🙂

    I’d contact Garmin directly if you need help with this.

    Can you use the Talkytoaster maps in base camp?

    Yes. Question 2a here.

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